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The turmoil affecting global markets came on the heels of Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda’s decision to raise rates, but you can't fault him given the volatile worldwide economic conditions.
COMMENTARY
Aug 6, 2024

Tokyo market rout — oops, the BOJ did it again

Japan’s central bank isn’t responsible for the bloodbath. But it’s reliving a terrible habit of hiking rates at the worst possible time.
Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at the Bitcoin 2024 event in Nashville, Tennessee, on July 27.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 6, 2024

Cryptoverse: Trump's bitcoin stockpile plan stirs debate

A strategic reserve would be one use for the massive amount of bitcoin held by the U.S. government, but the jury's out on whether it's feasible.
Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida (left) and Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe hold a joint news conference in Tokyo last week.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 6, 2024

Separate software efforts by Japan's carmakers may jeopardize success

The government has set a goal of having Japanese companies account for 30% of the software-defined vehicle market worldwide by 2030.
An electronic stock board displaying the Nikkei 225-issue Nikkei average outside a securities firm in Tokyo on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 6, 2024

Tokyo stocks rebound 10% following Monday’s mad rout

The yen, which had strengthened to the ¥141 mark on Monday from almost ¥162 just weeks earlier, was trading around ¥145 to the dollar on Tuesday.
Donald Trump has called for his supporters to stop using Google, doubling down on his criticisms of large technology companies.
WORLD
Aug 6, 2024

Trump suggests avoiding Google in interview with gamer Adin Ross

Trump called for his supporters to stop using Google, calling the search engine "illegitimate.”
Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance and three other insurance firms will be issued with cease-and-desist orders by the the Fair Trade Commission for forming a cartel, sources have said.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 6, 2024

Japan's FTC to issue orders to four major nonlife insurers in premium cartel

The insurers are said to have started prearranging premiums on contracts for Keisei Electric Railway, in which they shared the risk of covering payments, before 2020.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the newly minted Democratic vice presidential candidate, speaks during a campaign rally with U.S. Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, in Philadelphia on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 7, 2024

Harris and Walz campaign together for first time as White House ticket

The event kicked off a multiday tour of U.S. battleground states aimed at introducing Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz to the national stage.
Tim Walz, governor of Minnesota, speaks during an event at Earth Rider Brewery in Superior, Wisconsin, on Jan. 25.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 7, 2024

How Tim Walz pushed Minnesota toward aggressive climate policies

Tim Walz, the Minnesota governor tapped to become the Democratic vice presidential nominee, has accelerated his state’s embrace of clean energy and electric vehicles.
Google may try to avoid antitrust actions by terminating an agreement which makes its search engine a default on Apple devices.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 7, 2024

Google antitrust ruling may pose $20 billion risk for Apple

A potential remedy for Google to avoid antitrust actions could involve terminating the agreement, which makes its search engine a default on Apple devices.
The rate of the yen against the dollar displayed in the trading room at a foreign exchange brokerage in Tokyo on April 25.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 7, 2024

Japan's April yen-buying intervention sets new daily record

Quarterly data from the Finance Ministry showed that Japan spent a record ¥5.92 trillion on a single-day yen-buying intervention on April 29.
The NVIDIA logo in Los Angeles on July 31, 2017
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 7, 2024

Samsung's HBM3E chips clear Nvidia's tests for use, sources say

HBM3E chips are likely to become the mainstream HBM product in the market this year.
Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 7, 2024

Japan and Mongolia likely to agree on defense equipment transfer pact

Japan and Mongolia are likely to reach a broad agreement to conclude a treaty aimed at allowing the two nations to export defense equipment to one another, Japanese government officials said Tuesday.
The U.S. Democratic vice presidential nominee, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, speaks at Temple University in Philadelphia on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics / FOCUS
Aug 7, 2024

Walz pick shines spotlight on U.S. VP's possible foreign policy role

Walz brings to the table a strong background on China issues as well as a number of foreign policy stances that line up with that of Harris.
Bears think the best days for bank shares may be over, but for investors who are worried the yen may have further room to gain, bank shares have the additional benefit of having limited exposure to foreign-exchange fluctuations.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 7, 2024

Massive losses set stage for big rebound in Japan’s bank stocks

In the first three days of August, the Topix Banks index lost 26.5%, more than the 20.3% fall in the broader Topix index.
Shigeru Ishiba speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 7, 2024

LDP bigwig Ishiba endorses BOJ's rate hikes

"The Bank of Japan is on the right policy track" in raising interest rates, Shigeru Ishiba said.
Australia today is running aggressive recruitment campaigns to attract Kiwis to work in sectors like health care, early childhood education, police and prisons, tempting them with higher wages and relocation packages.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 8, 2024

Fed-up New Zealanders are flocking to Australia for better pay

Some 44,534 New Zealanders, almost 1% of the nation’s population of 5 million, left to live in Australia in 2023.
Nippon Telegraph and Telephone President Akira Shimada calls for a public debate on ending domestic telegram services.
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2024

NTT should consider ending telegram services, firm's president says

Telegrams continue to be used in Japan to send messages for events such as weddings and funerals.
Fans wave French flags at Champions Park in Paris on Aug. 1. Olympic fever has swept through the city during the Games and some Parisians who went on vacation to avoid the hoopla are now expressing some jealousy over those who stayed.
OLYMPICS
Aug 8, 2024

Parisians who left during Olympics are now 'a little jealous' of those who stayed

Olympic fever has taken over the French capital, leaving some of the Paris residents who fled feeling a tinge of jealousy.
Shiseido's sales in China are still sluggish as consumers remain reluctant to buy Japanese products over the discharge of treated water from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 8, 2024

Shiseido posts steepest drop since 1987 on anemic China demand

The company reported a January-June operating loss of ¥2.7 billion ($18.4 million), compared with profit of ¥13.6 billion a year earlier.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda speaks to reporters on July 3.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 8, 2024

Bank of Japan’s surprise rate rise a real head-scratcher for some analysts

Some analysts are skeptical about consumption actually being stimulated, saying that positive wage growth will not necessarily guarantee that.
Hideki Ito, commissioner of the Financial Services Agency, says Japan needs to be cautious about approving crypto-linked exchange-traded funds.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 8, 2024

Japan’s top finance regulator hesitant on crypto ETF approvals

Whether to follow the likes of Hong Kong and the U.S. by approving crypto-linked exchange-traded funds requires "cautious consideration,” he said.
A charging cable is connected to a Hyundai electric vehicle at the 2022 Busan International Motor Show in Busan, South Korea, on July 14, 2022.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 8, 2024

Seoul EV explosion sparks safety fears, prompting charging rethink

Over 700 people were evacuated and 23 hospitalized after an unplugged electric Mercedes-Benz sedan caught fire in a Seoul underground parking lot.
Japan’s civil servants will likely see the biggest salary increases in over three decades in the current fiscal year.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 8, 2024

Japan’s public servants may see biggest pay hike in 32 years

The Finance Ministry estimates that implementing these recommendations could increase the financial burden of sustain services by roughly ¥382 billion ($2.6 billion).
Olga Kharlan celebrates after Ukraine won the Olympic women's team saber gold-medal bout against South Korea on Aug. 3.
OLYMPICS
Aug 9, 2024

Olympic medals offer Ukraine a brief respite from war

Each of Ukraine’s 10 medals so far has been hailed in the war-torn country as a symbol of resilience and defiance.
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo. This week's market turmoil underscored how difficult it is for the central bank to limit market shocks as it unwinds years of extraordinary monetary stimulus.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 9, 2024

Mixed messages from BOJ leave traders guessing about its true aims

Investors are wondering how much faith they can put into the Bank of Japan following comments that appear to be damage control.
Researchers have flagged that Elon Musk, who purchased Twitter (now X) in 2022 and is a vocal backer of Donald Trump, appears to be swaying voters by spreading falsehoods on his personal account.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 9, 2024

Musk's misleading election posts viewed 1.2 billion times, study says

Elon Musk, who purchased Twitter (now X) in 2022 for $44 billion, is facing growing scrutiny over his potential influence on voters.
An electronic board displaying Topix and the yen exchange rate against the U.S. dollar outside a brokerage in Tokyo on Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Aug 9, 2024

Tokyo’s Monday stock crash an afterthought by Friday

Concern remained, and the search for a coherent explanation as to why Tokyo stocks crashed and shook investors globally was ongoing.
Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Monday as selloffs in global markets, including Japan’s Nikkei 225 index, deepened amid concerns about a slowdown in the global economy.
EDITORIALS
Aug 9, 2024

BOJ rate hike spooked markets, but it's not the sole culprit

Unwinding decades of loose monetary policy was always going to be challenging, and the global economy must brace for similar adjustments from other central banks.
Foreign airlines are pulling services or opting not to restart flights to China after the pandemic, whereas Chinese airlines are expanding overseas operations.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 10, 2024

Foreign airlines lose interest in China as domestic carriers expand abroad

Foreign rivals are struggling with weak China travel demand, rising costs and extended flight times because of the need to avoid Russian airspace.
The Kirin Holdings logo. B9 Beverages — backed by Kirin — is building a new brewing facility in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, which, once completed, will become India’s biggest beer factory.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 10, 2024

Kirin-backed Indian brewer seeks more clout with new factory

B9 Beverages is building a new brewing facility in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, which, once completed, will become India’s biggest beer factory.

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?